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According to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Christian Bethancourt was recently clocked at 97 mph while facing live hitters in Arizona.

Bethancourt has also been developing a changeup as he prepares to work as a pitcher in the Panama Winter League. The 25-year-old made two relief appearances for the Padres in 2016 and looked pretty good, allowing just one hit over 1 2/3 shutout innings. He hasn't hit well enough to establish himself as a reliable major league catcher, so the Friars will stretch this experiment and try to catch lightning in a bottle with Bethancourt's big arm. Oct 27 - 2:45 PM

According to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Padres are "exploring" the idea of using Christian Bethancourt as a pitcher/outfielder/catcher hybrid.

Bethancourt has thrown two recent bullpen sessions and has reportedly hit 96 mph on the radar gun. He made two pitching appearances for the Padres in 2016, allowing just one hit over 1 2/3 shutout innings. Betancourt also made 35 starts at catcher and seven as an outfielder. The 25-year-old was shut down for the year with an intercostal injury a few weeks ago. Oct 1 - 6:38 PM

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According to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Padres are "exploring" the idea of using Christian Bethancourt as a pitcher/outfielder/catcher hybrid.

Bethancourt has thrown two recent bullpen sessions and has reportedly hit 96 mph on the radar gun. He made two pitching appearances for the Padres in 2016, allowing just one hit over 1 2/3 shutout innings. Betancourt also made 35 starts at catcher and seven as an outfielder. The 25-year-old was shut down for the year with an intercostal injury a few weeks ago.

Christian Bethancourt exited Tuesday's game against the Braves with a left intercostal strain.

That's typically a four-week injury for a position player. Bethancourt was 0-for-2 before exiting and is batting just .228/.265/.368 in 73 games this season. The catcher will be reevaluated on Wednesday.

Christian Bethancourt went 2-for-4 with an RBI single and a stolen base in Monday's loss to the Mariners.

Bethancourt drew the start in the designated hitter spot and batted seventh -- one spot ahead of catcher Derek Norris. He's sporting a sub-.300 on-base percentage, but Bethancourt has out-produced Norris with a .267 average and .500 slugging percentage.

Christian Bethancourt went 2-for-3 and homered to account for the only run of the game Wednesday against the Cubs.

That's a pretty great game for Bethancourt on the day the Padres added a third catcher in Hector Sanchez. Bethancourt hasn't played much behind Derek Norris, but he's 8-for-30 with three homers in his limited action. He could get a chance to start later this season, as Norris is a strong candidate to be traded.

Christian Bethancourt connected for a two-run homer in Thursday’s loss to the Mariners.

It was a long blast which traveled to the batter’s eye in distant center field. The Padres bought low on Bethancourt over the winter after he quickly fell out of favor with the Braves, but it’s easy to forget that he’s just 24 years old. It will be interesting to see if his presence pushes the Padres to have Austin Hedges to begin the season in Triple-A.

So he'll be a little delayed getting to Padres camp in Arizona. No worries, unless this drags into March. Bethancourt was acquired from the Braves over the winter for Casey Kelly and Ricardo Rodriguez. The 24-year-old catcher will try to breathe life back into his career with the rebuilding Friars.

Bethancourt was once viewed as the catcher of the future for the Braves, but his hitting woes kept him from ever taking that role and, now, led to his exit from town. Kelly, like Bethancourt, was once a top prospect in his respective system. Bethancourt, 24, joins a crowded catcher group in San Diego. A trade of Derek Norris or Austin Hedges may follow.

According to FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, the Padres are close to acquiring Braves catcher Christian Bethancourt.

Bethancourt was a consensus top-100 prospect heading into the 2014 season, but he's been a major disappointment at the major league level for the Braves and they're locked and loaded at the catcher position for 2016 between Tyler Flowers and A.J. Pierzynski. Bethancourt will probably do well with a change of scenery, though he's not going to suddenly take on fantasy value in San Diego.

According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Padres are showing interest in catcher Christian Bethancourt.

Bethancourt had a rocky 2015, as he was shuttled to the minors in June and finished out the season having to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee. Braves GM John Coppolella has indicated that the team is not going to give up on the 24-year-old backstop, but they've re-signed A.J. Pierzynski and struck a two-year deal Tuesday with Tyler Flowers. It makes sense that other teams would inquire on Bethancourt, regardless of what the Braves front office is saying publicly. He was a consensus top-100 prospect leading into the 2014 season.

Braves general manager John Coppolella said that the team isn't giving up on young catcher Christian Bethancourt.

Bethancourt was expected to get the opportunity to run away with the starting catcher job in 2015, but the Braves gave up on that plan early on and demoted him to the minors in June. The plan was to give him a long look after calling him back up later on in the year, but he again took a back seat to A.J. Pierzynski. Overall, the 24-year-old batted just .200/.225/.290 in 160 plate appearances while struggling behind the plate. There have always been questions about his bat, but his defense was expected to be a strength. "There is so much talent and tools there [with Bethancourt], you have to let it play out," said Coppolella. "We'll see it where it goes, but we haven't given up on Christian Bethancourt." The Braves recently re-signed Pierzynski and have reportedly been in touch with free agent catcher Brayan Pena, so while they haven't given up on Bethancourt, they clearly aren't counting on him to play a significant role at this point.

Christian Bethancourt had arthroscopic surgery to repair the meniscus in his left knee.

Bethancourt should be able to resume workouts by the end of November, so it shouldn't impact his readiness for spring training. The 24-year-old is coming off a disappointing season where he batted just .200/.225/.290 in 160 plate appearances and had his share of struggles behind the plate. He could serve as a backup in 2016 if the Braves re-sign A.J. Pierzynski.

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According to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Christian Bethancourt was recently clocked at 97 mph while facing live hitters in Arizona.

Bethancourt has also been developing a changeup as he prepares to work as a pitcher in the Panama Winter League. The 25-year-old made two relief appearances for the Padres in 2016 and looked pretty good, allowing just one hit over 1 2/3 shutout innings. He hasn't hit well enough to establish himself as a reliable major league catcher, so the Friars will stretch this experiment and try to catch lightning in a bottle with Bethancourt's big arm.

Jabari Blash (finger) has been shut down for the rest of the 2016 season.

Blash has been sidelined by a sprained left middle finger since mid-August. He will rest his injured digit for the next 4-6 weeks. The Padres hope he will be able to play at some point during winter ball. In 71 at-bats with the major league team this season, the 27-year-old outfielder hit just .169/.298/.324 with three homers and five RBI.

The Padres announced Saturday that Jarred Cosart underwent successful surgery to remove loose bodies from his pitching elbow.

The bone spur in his elbow caused Cosart to miss his final two starts of the regular season. He'll be sidelined for the next six weeks before he's able to resume throwing. The club believes that he'll be fully recovered and ready to go for the start of spring training.

Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union Tribune reports that Colin Rea underwent successful Tommy John surgery on Thursday.

The Padres had been hopeful that he would be able to avoid going under the knife through rest and rehab, but Rea felt renewed discomfort after a throwing session earlier this week. He'll miss the entire 2017 season and hopes to be ready for the start of the 2018 campaign.

Capps, who was acquired from the Marlins in the Andrew Cashner trade, missed the entire 2016 season following Tommy John surgery in March. He's reportedly ahead of schedule in his rehab and could be ready for the start of next season.